


Cherry Blossoms In Her Hair

by ScribeOnTheSide



Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: Effie fan club, F/F, Lesbian Character, Light Angst, Long-Distance Relationship, Love Letters, Male-Female Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-05
Updated: 2017-10-05
Packaged: 2019-01-09 06:02:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,319
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12270369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScribeOnTheSide/pseuds/ScribeOnTheSide
Summary: Hana is away of royal business.  Effie is trying to figure out how to maneuver a long-distance relationship.  Niles notices her distress and resolves to help her out, especially since he is dealing with the same thing with Subaki.  My favorite bantering, antagonistic friends.





	Cherry Blossoms In Her Hair

**Author's Note:**

> I just love Niles and Effie together. They are such an odd couple yet fit together perfectly in my head. Her simplicity and single mindedness appeals to him while his worldliness and extravagance calls to her. 
> 
> You'll never convince me they don't hang out all the time.

_**... Dear Hana, I miss you. Are you getting back soon?…** _

Effie grimaced and erased the lines...again. Leaning back, she pushed a stray blonde lock out of her eyes, leaving a dark graphite streak across her cheek from her grimy fingertips. 

Show her an enemy to conquer, just get out of her way. Show her a rock to be lifted, no problem. Ask her to string sentences together in a coherent fashion to remind the woman she loved that she needed her desperately, apparently not in a million years.

Words, words, words...Words would be the death of her. Sighing, Effie shoved her chair back from the desk and stood up. She never was good at expressing herself in any way that wasn’t physical. When she was angry, she punched something. When she was sad, she ran. When she was in love...well… she had her ways there too. 

But physical expressions didn’t work at a distance. Her lover, the small samurai Hana, left three weeks before with the royal retinue of Princess Sakura. As a healer, Sakura wanted to tend to those who were affected by a large earthquake in the north of Hoshido as well as gather information on what supplies were needed to rebuild. It had been a week since the knight had last heard from Hana, with no hint of when she’d be coming home. Hana’s letters were chatty at first. She loved to pass on news from the local area, gossipy comments she’d heard, or who she’d seen. Those letters made Effie feel like she was right by her side and she re-read them constantly. 

Effie’s letters, on the other hand, were short. She tried to include interesting things but the phrases would elude her. She wanted sweet nothings whispering to her beloved from the page. But every attempt ended up ripped to shreds, her cheeks burning with embarrassment at how small her feelings seemed on paper. Eventually, she would scribble a couple of lines and just send it, hoping that her girlfriend could read between the lines how much she missed her. 

The last letter from Hana, however, was only a page and mostly concerned mundane things with questions about people in the castle. Effie could feel the distance through the paper. She *had* to fix this.

Effie folded up the loose papers and shoved them into her vest pocket, along with a pencil. Maybe a change of scenery would inspire her. She left her room, wandering the halls of the castle, looking for something...anything...to tell Hana. She stopped by the kitchen to grab a snack. Worrying always made her hungry. 

Crossing the open square, she headed towards the weapons training yard. When all else failed, hitting inanimate objects always seemed to help or at least make her too tired to care as much.

As she passed the rows of spears and lances that lined the entrance, she heard the solid “thump” of arrows repeatedly hitting home. Based on the speed behind the thumps, it could only be one person. Effie paused for a moment, not sure she wanted to see anyone. But with a shake of her head, she shoved the door open and walked in. 

Opposite the doorway stood a white haired man with a black eye patch and black archery gloves, bow pulled taut as he aimed down the long shooting range with his good eye. His target was a human shaped mannequin, pincushioned with feather shafts, mainly in the head, the heart, and the groin. Niles paused his breathing and loosed the arrow, burying the wooden length into the center of the dummy’s face. A smirk crossed his face, which changed into a broad smile when he spied Effie entering. 

“My Lady of A Sudden and Swift Demise! I’m so honored to be graced with your delicate presence. What brings such loveliness down to our squalid weapons range? You normally practice at dawn and dusk, not midday.”

Effie gave a weak smile.  
“Hey Niles. Just want to punch something for a bit.”

The tall, blonde knight unbuttoned her vest and dropped in a nearby bench, untucking her shirt for better movement. Then she walked over to a large bag full of sawdust and put on the padded gloves on the ground next to it. Niles notched another arrow but watched Effie out of the corner of his eye. She began by punching lightly and slowly, increasing the speed and power as she warmed up. He glanced back at the target and sent the arrow flying, hitting the target in the stomach.

“So, what seems to be the matter, sweet one? Your graceful punches seem to indicate something is on your mind. Perhaps a meal you skipped or a new lethal halberd for you to chuck at those that displease your goddess-ness?”

Effie grunted but didn’t stop punching the bag. Niles picked up his last arrow. This seemed serious. She didn’t even roll her eyes at his attempt at humor. Very few subjects put this gentle giantess into deep thought. Time to take a shot in the dark. His favorite kind of shot...

“How is our dearest Hana doing? It been a few weeks since she’s been in town I’ve heard.”

For a moment, Niles thought he’d missed the mark as Effie kept punching. However, the speed dropped and soon, the knight leaned her forehead into the bag, breathing heavily. He knew better than to push now. Effie couldn’t ever be rushed to talk. He waited, pretending to examine the fletching on the end of the arrow for flaws. 

Finally, she straightened up.  
“Hana’s fine. Her and the princess have the cleanup and rebuilding moving along.”

“Ah, yes. The princess has a heart as big as her entire nation and the coin to back it up.”

Effie went back to punching but with less ferocity than before.  
“How’s Subaki? I saw him flying around yesterday with a gaggle of teenagers weaving around behind him.”

Hmm… a not-so-subtle play at changing the topic to one she knew he loved. Now Niles was even more intrigued to get her to talk. He lined up his final shot, splitting the arrow that was already between the target dummy’s eyes. 

“My lovely flyer wishes he’d accompanied his princess and your paramour, just to see what kind of damage an earthquake could do. But, alas, duty called. He’s in charge of all the new Pegasus Knights in training and this new class keeps him too busy for fun at the moment.”

Niles began to retrieve the arrows that were still in good shape and reloaded the practice quiver while Effie picked up speed again. Then he leaned against the stone wall and waited. She couldn’t keep it up forever. The past taught him that patience would be rewarded when it came to anything to do with Effie.

Punch after punch, Effie tried fight away her doubts. What if she couldn’t find a way to connect with Hana? This is how their lives were going to be, long periods away from each other with infrequent messages as their only connection. No way around that short of both leaving their duties behind. Effie couldn’t leave Elise and she would *never* ask Hana to leave Sakura. There had to be some way that didn’t depend on her being able to write long letters full of flower words and feelings. She tried and tried but they alway were whiny and full of loneliness and complaints. Her brain hurt from thinking about it. This wasn’t working.

With a final vicious right, Effie ripped off her gloves and threw them to the ground. She stood there rubbing the soreness out of her hands when a cough startled her. Whirling around, she jumped when she saw Niles behind her, just out of reach. He’d learned the hard way never to be too near when he was in one of Effie’s blind spots. . 

“So…if you are done punishing that poor defenseless bag for transgressions unknown, would you care for a walk and maybe to unburden about what really is troubling you? I’ll even let you purchase me a snack for my pains.”

Effie opened her mouth with a reflexive retort but paused. Nobody used more words than NIles. He played with them like toys, making her head swim when trying to follow what he was saying sometimes. His boyfriend, Subaki, also travelled a lot, between getting the new combined Hoshidan/Norian Pegasus Riders coordinated and following Princess Sakura on her humanitarian adventures. As loathed as she was to ask for his help, he actually could be useful here. 

She shrugged.  
“I could eat.”

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They stopped on a bridge in the center of the market district. The town around the outside of the castle walls bustled as people went about their daily work. For the most part, they ignored the statuesque woman and her vaguely menacing companion. Or at least had the good sense and manners to pretend they weren’t intrigued by what the castle folk were up to. Both gnawed on meat-on-a-stick, bought from a street vendor near by. Niles finished first and tossed the stick into the rushing water below them.

“An excellent choice, dear Amazonian, even if its animal of origin is up for speculation.”

Effie grunted her agreement as she finished her own. They stood in fraught silence for a time. Finally, Effie sighed and started walking, taking the path along the river. Niles fell into step next to her.

“I can’t seem to stay connected with Hana when she’s gone. She writes these letters, these grand letters… and I can’t write anything. I sputter some words onto paper and send them. They aren’t what she wants, I’m positive. How do you do it? How do you keep Subaki coming back to you, over and over, even after a long time?”

Niles thought for a moment, toying with the metal disks on his belt and frowning slightly.  
“I don’t know. No one ever returned to me before. When my lovely left for the first time, I resigned myself to few notes followed by him being too ‘busy’ to see me when he returned. That first letter though…”

He paused, the corner of his mouth turning up slightly.

“That first letter from him was a revelation. My perfectly proper knight lets his mask slip on paper. Amazingly, it seemed he really loved me and told me so. I can only assume my few good qualities tricked him into coming back to me.”

Effie couldn’t help but smile at how wonderstruck Niles sounded when talking about Subaki.  
“You having good qualities would be a revelation to us all.”

Niles laughed and gave her a wink.  
“I assure you, he’s fond of my very bad qualities too. He likes to tell me and the neighbors about it quite vocally at times. Now let me see what you tried to write.”

Effie rolled her eyes but handed over the papers, one of which still had the faint traces of her previous attempts. Niles held it up to the light, scanning the lines quickly. Sighing, he crumbled it up and tossed it in the river. 

“We absolutely can’t send this rubbish. It’s an insult to the art of romance. Therefore, I shall assist you, Lady Tiger Lily, in delighting your inamorata...for a small price.”

“I don’t know what that word means but it better not be insulting. What would that price be, scoundrel?”

“It’s not. And to read the letter you will swiftly get in return. Just to see if it had the intended effect, of course, no prurient interest at all.” Niles smirked.

Effie hesitated but the thought of being able to send something that Hana would like was too much for her.

“Deal. But you can’t write it. I don’t want you slipping in anything in there that I would never ever say..” 

Niles rolled his eye.  
“Oh ye of little faith! I’d be wounded if that wasn’t totally something I’d do. I shall simply sketch out an example. Now, where to start...”

As they passed a small inn, Niles planted himself at one of the wooden tables placed around the entrance under the neighboring trees. He smoothed out the paper Effie gave him and wrote a few lines.

Niles put down his pencil and began to recite, emphasizing his words with emphatic gestures.

_**My greatest love, Hana. My soul is famished from a lack of your love! My body aches from your absence. Oh, how I long for your lusciously long locks, your smoothly soft skin, your buxom bouncing...**_

Effie snatched the paper from his hand.  
“By Naga, No! No, no, no! I can’t send anything like that!”

Niles laughed, leaning back in his chair.  
“Ah, perhaps, my dear knight, you are correct. Your tiny samurai would know instantly that you were not the author of such fine words.”

Effie paced in front of the table, wrestling with her frustration. This had been a stupid idea. What was she thinking, involving Niles in this? She walked across the path towards a grove of trees that grew near the river. Niles watched her go before standing up to follow. She headed straight to a squat tree near the center, heavy with fruit. Niles noted she didn’t once look at the other trees on her way there. She obviously had a destination. 

Sitting at the foot of the cherry tree, Effie leaned against the trunk and closed her eyes, trying to recenter and calm her thoughts. 

“What are you thinking about right this moment?” came Niles’ voice, soft and soothing.

Effie smiled sadly without opening her eyes.  
“About the day Hana showed me this tree. She made me a necklace from the blossoms that had just appeared. It was only a few days after we’d kissed for the first time. A breeze blew up and scattered the blossoms like snow, all around us. I thought she was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen with those white petals sprinkled in her hair.”

Niles folded the paper he’d been writing on and tucked it in his pocket. He walked over to her (making plenty of noise as to not startle the warrior), touching her gently on the shoulder.

“Come now, Eff. Let’s take a walk.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------------

As they walked through the town, Niles stayed half a step behind, trying to watch her face without being too obvious. Occasionally, he’d stop, claiming to need a moment to rest. They’d talk about the area around them, usually with Niles asking questions and Effie answering. 

A small bridge over an offshoot of the main river (“Princess Sakura and Hana were up there, on the castle wall the first time I ever saw her. I was standing guard here.”)

The entrance arch to a small chapel (“I told Hana I loved her after the Remembrance service, a few weeks after our first real date.”)

A wine merchant’s shop (“We spent a day here with Subaki, tasting different wines for a party he was going to throw. Hana was trying to teach me the different types and qualities. By the end, we were so drunk, we couldn’t find our lodgings. Without your boyfriend, we’d have never gotten home. That hangover was awful.”)

Everywhere the pair went, Effie had a memory. Back at the castle front door however, her warm mood fell. The letter still wasn’t written and she still had no idea what to do. Sighing, she turned to head inside.

“Thanks for the walk, Niles. But it’s hopeless… *I’m* hopeless. I’ll go scrawl something pointless and short. Better she get something than nothing, I guess.”

Niles patted her on the back.  
“Now, now, my muscular friend, there is not less hope but more!. You’ve already scribed the perfect communique. Here…”

He handed Effie the paper he’d been scribbling secretly during their walk. It was a list of everywhere they’d gone that day, starting with the cherry tree. The knight looked confused.

“How is this going to help? ‘Dear Hana, i went here and there and over here’? That’s boring!”

Niles shook his head with a grimace.  
“What am I going to do with you? Effie dearest, it’s not the places. It’s the memories. Tell her what the places *mean* to you. Why did you go back to that tree? Why does a slight smile tug at your mouth when you pass the chapel? *That’s* what she wants to know. That you think of her every moment of every day.”

Effie stood lost in thought for moment. Then she grabbed Niles into a bear hug, spinning him around as she laughed. 

“That’s it! By the gods, that’s it! Niles, you’re a genius!”

Niles gasped for air.  
“I...know. Can you... put me... down, Ef?”

She backed up, turning pink, while Niles recovered.  
“What I meant was...uhhh...you’re pretty smart for a scoundrel.” 

Niles winced as he stretched out his back then gave her a smirk.  
“I know precisely what you meant. Now, my violent one, go write that letter before you forget everything and go work out instead. Don’t forget... I get to read the reply.”

With a light punch on her arm, Niles headed back out into the town. Effie watched him for a second.  
“I owe you, my friend.” she said softly, before turning and running up the stairs to her room. 

Once at her desk, Effie pulled out more paper, setting Niles’ note next to it for reference. The words flowed, simple but real.

_**Dear Hana, Today I took a walk with Niles. I sat beneath our cherry tree, thinking about the cherry blossom necklace you made. You looked like a goddess with the petals in your hair after that breeze made them rain down upon us. After that, everything I saw reminded me of you, of us...”  
**_

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A week later, Effie found Niles eating dinner at the small inn next to the castle. 

“Lady Lance! To what do I owe the pleasure of this visit? Sit! I know you have to be hungry.”

She sat down, a faint blush on her cheeks with a shy smile.  
“Well, yeah, always. Hey, ummm, so… I got a reply.”

Niles raised an eyebrow and held out his hand. She passed the pages over.  
“A deal’s a deal. But *please* don’t read any of it out loud.”

Niles flipped through the many pages.  
“So many pages! Methinks you must have found your way into your lady’s heart and bed.”

Niles began to read but after the first page, he stopped and handed them back to the knight.  
“I release you from your deal. It seems...odd for me to say...wrong, in some way. But from the first page, I can tell that you were *extremely* successful.”

Effie took the note back with a smile.  
“Thanks to you, you mean. Hana did include something at the end you should read.”

She pointed to the postscript at the end.

_**“P.S. Niles, thanks for keeping an eye on Eff. And thanks for the inspiration. I know it had to be you. Well worth it!”  
**_

Niles laughed.  
“Your lady is observant and wise. Now, what would you like for dinner?”

Effie waved over a server.  
“I don't know but I’m starving.”

“What else is new? You not eating is like a day without sun.”

“Well, some of us work hard for a living instead of sitting around trying to be witty and scandalous.”

“Being witty keeps one from having to work too hard and scandalous is a great deal of fun. You should try it sometime..”

“Pfffttt…meet me in the weapons room tomorrow and we can see who works hardest.”

“My lady, only a fool would take up that offer. Blackberry wine?”

“Sure. So what’s this I hear about Odin getting in a fight with Orochi?”

“Oh! The drama! The intrigue! The pettiness! Let me tell you…”


End file.
